MacWorld Expo 2007 summary

[bbloke]

As many will have gathered, the MacWorld Expo has been underway and Steve Jobs gave his keynote address today (January 9th). There were not many announcements, but the announcements made were quite big!

iTV

• Intel processor
• 40 GB hard drive for storing content locally
• 802.11 b, g, and n compatible
• Enhanced-definition or high-definition widescreen TVs capable of 1080i 60/50Hz, 720p 60/50Hz, 576p 50Hz (PAL format), or 480p 60Hz
• Designed for widescreen TVs (16:9 ratio)
• Can stream from up to five computers (Mac or PC) or from www.apple.com/trailers
• Shipping in February

iPhone (the big announcement!)

• 3.5" widescreen touch-sensitive display
• Displays 320 by 480 at 160 ppi
• Dimensions: 115 x 61 x 11.6 mm
• Weight: 135 grams
• Uses a version of OS X
• 4 GB ($499) or 8 GB ($599) versions
• proximity sensor, accelerometer, and ambient light sensors
• 2.0 megapixel camera
• Quad-band
• GSM/EDGE
• Wi-Fi (802.11b/g)
• Bluetooth 2.0
• Battery life: 16 hours of audio playback, 5 hours talk/video/browse time
• Conference call support with up to three participants
• Multiple SMS session support
• Safari
• Widgets
• Yahoo IMAP mail
• Google Maps
• Exclusively offered with Cingular
  
• Due later in the year (June for the USA, Q4 for Europe)...........

AirPort Extreme:

• Updated to 802.11n for better performance
• Compatible with 802.11 a, b, and g
• Shipping in February

For more information, see:

http://www.apple.com/iphone/

http://www.apple.com/appletv/

http://www.apple.com/airportextreme/


Steve jobs' keynote will eventually be shown at: http://www.apple.com/iphone/keynote/

[fryke]

totally unclear so far: does the 4 GB iPhone use 2.5 GB for the OS? or is the OS stored separately? (I expect the latter.) Can one install other applications? Third party apps or only 9.99 USD specialty apps bought on iTunes (i.e. games)? Is the OS upgradable for the user - or is that simply handled through iTunes as well? I *guess* Apple will keep this deviced very closed for the user - and rightly so to some extent. But I *do* hope that there'll be _some_ developer information for adding applications. And not just widgets, I hope.

[Trip]

I'm actually pretty disappointed. An iPhone for $400+? Does Apple market towards people with really high paying jobs or what? I was hoping for a lot more, or at least something new with the next release of X.

[symphonix]

Originally Posted by Trip

I'm actually pretty disappointed. An iPhone for $400+? Does Apple market towards people with really high paying jobs or what?

That sounds like *exactly* the right market to pitch their first high-end mobile phone at. The "Poor, starving student" market just isn't as lucrative.

Also, for 60 points, can you tell me how much the original iPod cost? $399. Can you tell me how much people will be paying for the PlayStation 3? Or for a laptop or desktop PC? For many executives this kind of device could essentially replace a $1000 laptop.

[fryke]

Mind the iPod. The first one cost 499 USD. Overall voices said "it's good, but much too expensive", yet see where it's taken us. ... But without contract, the iPhone would probably cost near 800 or 900 USD, which _is_ a tad much. Mind you: I'll still buy one.

[nixgeek]

I'm actually a little disappointed, too. The Macs that are out now are phenomenal, so I wasn't really looking for a new Mac to come out now (although a thin MacBook/MacTablet using the technology in the iPhone would be nice ). I was looking for an update to iLife, especially with GarageBand. Maybe something with MIDI out finally?? While the releases were nice, none of them were anything that I was thrilled about. I already have a DVR with On-Demand that came with my cable plan, and the iPhone (while an awesome device, no doubt about that) just doesn't cater to my needs.

It's only Tuesday, so let's see what else Apple comes out with. HOpefully we will see an updated iLife suite this week (and hopefully a GarageBand with MIDI out, too ).

[Lt Major Burns]

i think nixgeek gets the prize for summing the keynote up: there's no macs, because the mac we have are pretty much the best computers ever. pound for for pound, and in terms of features, usablity, design and power, the current lineup is pretty damn good.

oh and yes, i want an iPhone.

however, i was hoping for a 6G ipod, my 4g B+W is getting a bit old now...

[lbj]

Anybody else think that we are looking at the next gen iPod when looking at the phone?